Walcott returned here Monday to a hero's welcome after winning the javelin throw event in a stunning upset last Saturday on the penultimate day of the London Olympics, reports CMC.

For Trinidad and Tobago, the gold medal represented the country's first since the legendary Hasely Crawford won the 100 metres at the 1976 Olympics in Montreal.

"Everyone knows it's already gone so it's all up to the future. There's more Olympics to come, they're more World Championships and now that I am a senior, I'm just going to go back and train," Walcott said.

"It's all about training you know and I was training. Throughout the year I have been training normal so I'm just going back to that, just sticking with me and my coach.

"I know that they are going to be a lot of expectations from me now so I'm going to have to live with it."

For his accomplishment, Walcott was feted with million-dollar-worth of gifts by the Trinidad and Tobago government, including $156,740 in cash and a house worth $390,000 in a high-end residential area.

He was also given 20,000 square feet in his home village of Toco, just south of the capital.

Recounting the Olympic experience, Walcott said at no time did he envision winning gold medal, especially competing at an Olympiad for the first time.

"Throughout the competition I was relaxed, I wasn't really paying much attention to the competition because I told myself making the finals was good enough for me at age 19," Walcott explained.

"I went out there just to do my best, so when I went out with my first throw I was surprised at the distance. Leading up to my second throw I was just like, 'okay, I'm going to throw again and hopefully I get a personal best again' and I did it - 84.58 metres."

He continued: "I never thought that 84 would have won the Olympics because throughout the years I've been watching Olympics they have been higher aims, guys have been throwing farther and I know the guys were experienced so it was a little bit frightening for me."

Walcott's gold was one of four medals for T&T in London - a record haul for the country at an Olympiad.

Lalonde Gordon won bronze in the men's 400 metres while the sprint and distance relay teams also grabbed bronze.

Only last month, Walcott crowned himself World Junior champion when he took gold in the javelin in Barcelona.

--IANS/CMC

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